jenga Posted February 3, 2014 Report Share Posted February 3, 2014 Yes and all those Elite League snobs are about to find out just how exciting third tier riders can be especially in the races against each other. The Premier League missed a trick here in my opinion. Malcolm Vasey what trick was that then. didnt we have 3 pointers in the pl a few years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bagpuss Posted February 3, 2014 Report Share Posted February 3, 2014 Eight years ago and then it was dropped, allowing sub standard foreigners like Edberg, Nielsen, Graversen, Barrett, Lykke, Dilger, Helfer etc to ply their trade here instead. Hopefully the PL will follow the EL's lead in 2015. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben91 Posted February 4, 2014 Report Share Posted February 4, 2014 Eight years ago and then it was dropped, allowing sub standard foreigners like Edberg, Nielsen, Graversen, Barrett, Lykke, Dilger, Helfer etc to ply their trade here instead. Hopefully the PL will follow the EL's lead in 2015. It was a rule altered mid season to stop Steve Boxall and Jon Armstrong from continuing to do so well at reserve so they both then had to move into the main team. It was then ridiculously dropped for the best season and we've been back to where we were ever since. Brit reserves in all leagues should be enforced as a minimum IMO. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben91 Posted February 4, 2014 Report Share Posted February 4, 2014 Eight years ago and then it was dropped, allowing sub standard foreigners like Edberg, Nielsen, Graversen, Barrett, Lykke, Dilger, Helfer etc to ply their trade here instead. Hopefully the PL will follow the EL's lead in 2015. It was a rule altered mid season to stop Steve Boxall and Jon Armstrong from continuing to do so well at reserve so they both then had to move into the main team. It was then ridiculously dropped for the best season and we've been back to where we were ever since. Brit reserves in all leagues should be enforced as a minimum IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Swift Saint Posted February 4, 2014 Popular Post Report Share Posted February 4, 2014 It was a rule altered mid season to stop Steve Boxall and Jon Armstrong from continuing to do so well at reserve so they both then had to move into the main team. It was then ridiculously dropped for the best season and we've been back to where we were ever since. Brit reserves in all leagues should be enforced as a minimum IMO. I think you have to detach those who care only about the future of the sport from those who have to operate financial management of their clubs in perilous times and take decisions that are best at the time given their own circumstances. Without those risk takers there would be no sport at all to speak of. However, we need a carefully co-ordinated plan to move forward with greater emphasis on the use of Britiish riders who in the long run would be cheaper. In my view the public are tired of the type of foreigners that Bagpuss describes anyway and the advent of a great World Champion in our midst has spurred on the clamour for more Brits and better Brits. We no longer have overseas riders of any description in the National League and that is good but we need the National League to be bigger with a lower points limit and thus development opportunities to build on and latch itself to the work now done so comprehensively by Phil Morris and Neil Vatcher. We need National League teams in Wales and in Scotland as a must so that riders like James McBain do not have to travel 250 miles for a home match as he is doing next season. It needs planning and I hope that the Elite League initiative will help improve these matters and that they will see enough to participate more fully in the National League like Coventry, Kings Lynn etc. Football invests millions on development as they capture the hearts and minds of the youth of Britain to participate in their sport which at the basic level you can play with two coats and a ball. Speedway is difficult to get started in and even more difficult to make a success of. Thus it follows that we heave to nurture those who are attracted to us as participants. We are lagging behind other sports it would seem and the time is nigh where we must turn these issues around. I hope we can and that serious money can be directed at this opportunity whether that be from existing funds or from new sponsorship. It has to happen. Malcolm Vasey 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahLapworth Posted February 4, 2014 Report Share Posted February 4, 2014 Eight years ago and then it was dropped, allowing sub standard foreigners like Edberg, Nielsen, Graversen, Barrett, Lykke, Dilger, Helfer etc to ply their trade here instead. Hopefully the PL will follow the EL's lead in 2015. Blimey!! That's 3 members of the old Team Viking touring team in there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bagpuss Posted February 4, 2014 Report Share Posted February 4, 2014 No disrespect to those riders but we shouldn't be giving them jobs over British lads who could do just as good a job. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berniev123 Posted February 4, 2014 Report Share Posted February 4, 2014 Hope that the 14 that turn up on a Tuesday at Monmore Wood will be great to watch......win or loose!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahLapworth Posted February 4, 2014 Report Share Posted February 4, 2014 No disrespect to those riders but we shouldn't be giving them jobs over British lads who could do just as good a job. Even though I ran that team for a couple of years I do actually agree with you there Bagpuss. I think we should go further though and stop the Premier league using the same bunch of boring riders who get passed around the clubs year after year and give their places to the young British lads coming. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhamboy66 Posted February 4, 2014 Report Share Posted February 4, 2014 Even though I ran that team for a couple of years I do actually agree with you there Bagpuss. I think we should go further though and stop the Premier league using the same bunch of boring riders who get passed around the clubs year after year and give their places to the young British lads coming.Trouble is if they are EC citizens there is no way around it. Rules cannot be set to insist on British riders taking team places. Look at the attempt by Sweden to do something similar and they can't do it officially. Sad but trueFurthermore some years ago There was an agreement to have British riders at six and seven in the Pl for the entire season. That lasted only a short time and mainly due to Steve Boxalls success at Rye House the rule was ditched mid season, some help to young British riders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greyhoundp Posted February 5, 2014 Report Share Posted February 5, 2014 Trouble is if they are EC citizens there is no way around it. Rules cannot be set to insist on British riders taking team places. Look at the attempt by Sweden to do something similar and they can't do it officially. Sad but true Furthermore some years ago There was an agreement to have British riders at six and seven in the Pl for the entire season. That lasted only a short time and mainly due to Steve Boxalls success at Rye House the rule was ditched mid season, some help to young British riders. Of course there is a way around it, or is what the EL is doing with NL riders at 6 & 7 illegal ?. No quite simply it only needs a pick of draft NL riders at 7 or 6 & 7 for it to be possible, where there is a will, theres always a way, especially in speedway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teddy2706 Posted February 6, 2014 Report Share Posted February 6, 2014 I think you have to detach those who care only about the future of the sport from those who have to operate financial management of their clubs in perilous times and take decisions that are best at the time given their own circumstances. Without those risk takers there would be no sport at all to speak of. However, we need a carefully co-ordinated plan to move forward with greater emphasis on the use of Britiish riders who in the long run would be cheaper. In my view the public are tired of the type of foreigners that Bagpuss describes anyway and the advent of a great World Champion in our midst has spurred on the clamour for more Brits and better Brits. We no longer have overseas riders of any description in the National League and that is good but we need the National League to be bigger with a lower points limit and thus development opportunities to build on and latch itself to the work now done so comprehensively by Phil Morris and Neil Vatcher. We need National League teams in Wales and in Scotland as a must so that riders like James McBain do not have to travel 250 miles for a home match as he is doing next season. It needs planning and I hope that the Elite League initiative will help improve these matters and that they will see enough to participate more fully in the National League like Coventry, Kings Lynn etc. Football invests millions on development as they capture the hearts and minds of the youth of Britain to participate in their sport which at the basic level you can play with two coats and a ball. Speedway is difficult to get started in and even more difficult to make a success of. Thus it follows that we heave to nurture those who are attracted to us as participants. We are lagging behind other sports it would seem and the time is nigh where we must turn these issues around. I hope we can and that serious money can be directed at this opportunity whether that be from existing funds or from new sponsorship. It has to happen. Malcolm Vasey Surely the assumption that tracks will utilise local riders is a flawed argument? Tim Webster was travelling over 250 miles each way to ride for Stoke, Ryan Blacklock ran 170 miles each way to ride Buxton, neither got paid anything like the true cost of the travelling expenses.Liam Carr has a run of around 170 miles too. How far was Robert Lambert's commute to work last season and was he being paid the going rate? ( I think many of us know the answer to that). Simon Lambert will have to travel around 150 miles each way to Kent too. After Newport's ignominious exit, Welsh tracks may be a sad dream but nothing apart from money prevents Edinburgh, Glasgow and even Berwick, Workington and Newcastle running NL teams. Where will the money come from? Apart from sponsors obviously, it needs people to wake up to the fact that NL racing might well be the most exciting league to watch and get down there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevePark Posted February 6, 2014 Report Share Posted February 6, 2014 Trouble is if they are EC citizens there is no way around it. Rules cannot be set to insist on British riders taking team places. Look at the attempt by Sweden to do something similar and they can't do it officially. Sad but true Furthermore some years ago There was an agreement to have British riders at six and seven in the Pl for the entire season. That lasted only a short time and mainly due to Steve Boxalls success at Rye House the rule was ditched mid season, some help to young British riders. Just don't pick them. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parsloes 1928 nearly Posted February 6, 2014 Report Share Posted February 6, 2014 Ryan Blacklock ran 170 miles each way to ride Buxton..Blimey, he ran that distance? He must've been plumb tuckered out..! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
21st century heathen Posted February 7, 2014 Report Share Posted February 7, 2014 Riders to watch in 2014? Quite a few to be honest but I've restricted myself to one from each (most) team as one I think will 'one to watch'. Buxton - Carr I'm expecting big things from him this season. A combination of few of last season's big hitters and (a recurring theme for many to follow) a natural improved this season on last will see Liam's average rise sharply I believe. I'd expect out-and-out heat leader quality at home and a menace on the road where he could lower a few colours. His away form may well define the season for Buxton. It won't be easy but he could inspire them to some surprise results that just keep the league total ticking over. Coventry - Dan Greenwood Dan was absolutely flying toward the end of the last season and if he can start the season in that form and stay fully fit the confidence will build relentlessly. He's had plenty of laps around Brandon so it's not like he will need time to settle on a new home track. He was very good value for the Heathens in the mickey mouse pairs that Coventry staged last season, outshining Starke on the night. He's not riding in a heat leader position to start the season but he could very easily be riding to a heat leader average and could make the Storm title favourites (and the fours and the cup!). Cradley - Tough one this and one I have naturally thought more about than the other clubs. Starke needs to prove last season wasn't a flash in the pan. Can he maintain or even kick on from his near 10-point average? Can Worrall finally (a couple of years late perhaps) have a really big breakthrough year like his brother had? Can Perry regain his true form after a difficult 2013 that was affected by illness and injury? Can Clegg bolster the middle order with more consistent away form which will probably mean finding a way to be more consistent from the gate? Can Greaves handle the pressure in starting in the 1-5 and more importantly keep it rubber side down? I came very close to naming Greaves my one to watch for the Heathens for this very reason. He had something like 15 retirements and exclusions last season and I'm sure by far the majority were due to slipping off the bike while in good scoring positions, mostly 1st or 2nd placed at the time. Put this right and he'll raise his average significantly again. I then considered Phillips who is a rider I wanted us to sign this season but expected to go to Mildenhall, so imagine my surprise and delight. I quite sure he can replicate what many a 3-pointer with a bit of quality does and put at least a point on his average with a combination of cracking scores when it all comes together and perhaps the odd disappointment when arguably trying to hard and blip in confidence (see Greaves). But in the end I'm going for Williamson. This is mostly down to two reasons. He has last year under his belt and he starts from a lower average than Greaves giving more room for average improvement. His points at the lower end, along with Greaves and Phillips will be crucial and likely define our season. We may see him need some time to get used to Monmore and work out the lines and that you ride it with your brain as much your throttle but I expect Starke in particular to be on-hand to give as much help as the lad asks for. Devon - An unknown at this point. Kent - Freemantle. The top three will do their job and provide a solid base for the club to launch its assault on the silverware and Mason/Chessell will do what they does in the middle order. Freemantle has all the potential to move straight in to the top 5 and prove himself a very worthy addition to it. He's certainly going to be one of the ones to watch in the league not just his own club. I expect a big average improvement and one that could prove to be the difference between two teams when they go head-to-head. King's Lynn - For me this one was quite straight forward. It's Rose; simple as that really. I expect him to soar head and shoulders above his team mates and provided he keeps his focus and channels drive and determination the right way I believe he'll become one of the top riders in the league this season. Competition amongst the top riders will still be stern despite so many having moved and this is he'll need to make sure he try too much and end up with falls or exclusions costing him points. There may be time when a 2nd or a 3rd has to be settled for but over the course of the season it'll see his stock rise. Mildenhall - Kingston is the man for them in what looks another solid line-up. It's a team packed with potential but this lad probably impressed me most of all visitors to Monmore last season, and I'm not alone in thinking his display that night was truly noteworthy. In a similar position to Greaves in that he's going to start in the top 5 with a season under his belt so it could be how he approaches the extra responsibility and expectation that come with that which ultimately proves me right or wrong in naming him one to watch. I do expect a big but steady improvement from him as he doesn't strike me as a rider to make rash or foolish decisions. Scunthorpe - Another unknown quantity and I suspect I may not be the best person to pick one out of their line-up when it's known as it may well feature riders I know little if anything about. Stoke - There's one man I think will define how far up the league Stoke can push next season so he's without any doubt or hesitation my one to watch from their septet. I think it could be a really big season for Hopwood. I view him similarly to Dan Greenwood as a 2013 second string that will benefit hugely in 2014 from both natural progress and the number of heat leaders that have moved on. There are still riders that will average a fair big more than Hopwood (and Greenwood) but he will shine in this league, of that I have not about. Great to have Devon and Scunny in the league this season and I look forward to seeing how they line up. As good as this is I join with everybody in being truly gutted that we've lost IOW. I really hope a solution is found down there but it doesn't look good at the moment. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parsloes 1928 nearly Posted February 10, 2014 Report Share Posted February 10, 2014 Good stuff 21CH. My pick from the Storm though would be the other Greenwood: Oliver. He is a rider of great potential and I reckon 2014 will be the year he breaks through in a big way... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HBKPCNBob Posted February 11, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2014 Thanks for that guys, I am hoping to sponsor a talented rider next season. Its just nice to know who is doing it right out there atm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve povey Posted February 11, 2014 Report Share Posted February 11, 2014 Nathan Greaves is my pick.Saw enough last year to think he improve significantly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigred Posted February 12, 2014 Report Share Posted February 12, 2014 Nathan Greaves is my pick.Saw enough last year to think he improve significantly. as his sponsor you cant really say any other really..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ommer Mon Posted February 12, 2014 Report Share Posted February 12, 2014 I think 21 CH nailed it with Dan Greenwood. I think Cradley could have dropped a clanger letting him go (and I know he was in their first choice septet). Dan was brilliant at the end of last season but he does need to keep his self belief up. If he does that he could be an 8 pointer by the end of the year. Good luck to him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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